by Krista | May 3, 2011 | Compatriot Wednesday
After a veritable torrent of rain, the clouds parted and the sun shone through just in time for Cooking Club this week. Yay!
My friends and I gathered at Darren’s house, arms filled with all sorts of ingredients to make a delectable array of soups and sushi and appetizers.
Nicole started us off with a big bowl of salted tortilla chips and her refreshing Bell Pepper Salsa.
I made an African Chickpea Soup made with Cumin and Ras al Hanout and served it with scallions and capers. It is my new favorite soup and the thing I crave when I’m not feeling so good.
Darren made a salty and warming Miso Soup that was the perfect start to a night of sushi.
Cameron, Robin, Kat and Ed worked like fiends slicing and dicing all sorts of seafood, fresh tuna, vegetables, and seaweed, turning out the most gorgeous platters of stunning color and texture.
They made Ball Sushi topped with Tamago Yaki (rolled sweet omelette) and Prawns…
…and regular sushi stuffed with cucumber, carrot, and seafood…
…and bar sushi topped with seared tuna and wrapped in seaweed strips.
Michael made a splendid Eel Sauce to accompany each morsel and before long we had eaten those platters clean.
Don ended our evening with a round of his famously stout Cosmopolitans and we all relaxed and visited until it was time to go home.
Are you a sushi fan? If yes, what is your favorite kind?
Krista’s African Chickpea Soup
Ingredients:
2 cups chickpeas (soaked overnight or 2 cans rinsed and drained)
1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
2-3 bay leaves
1 onion, chopped fine
2 pints chicken broth
2 cups water
2 Tbsp minced garlic
1 1/2 tsp salt
pepper
1 Tbsp ground cumin
2 Tbsp Ras al Hanout
1/2 cup sliced scallions
1 small jar capers (rinsed)
Directions:
- In soup pot heat olive oil and bay leaves, add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add chickpeas, broth and water. (If using canned chickpeas, omit water) Bring to boil and simmer covered about an hour.
- In small bowl mix garlic, salt, pepper, cumin and Ras al Hanout.
- When hour is up, add spice mixture to pot, stir, and continue cooking 20 minutes more.
- Taste and add salt if necessary.
- Ladle into bowls and serve with scallions and capers.
Darren’s Miso Soup
Ingredients:
8 cups water
8 Tbsp miso paste
2 scallions, sliced thin
1 cup chopped shrimp
Directions:
- Combine everything in saucepan and bring to boil.
- Reduce heat and simmer 15-20 minutes.
Kat and Ed’s Rolled Sweet Omelette (Tamago Yaki)
(Can also be served as a side dish with sushi)
Ingredients:
4 eggs
dash of salt
15 ml (1 T) water
30 ml (2 T) sugar
10 ml (2 t) soy sauce
45 ml (3 T) sake or dry white wine – we used chardonnay
Special Equipment:
(we used none of these, and it turned out fine, but if you’re going to be a purist…)
a square frying pan
a bamboo sushi rolling mat
chopsticks
cheesecloth (optional)
Directions:
- Beat the eggs in a bowl and add a pinch of salt
- Add water to the egg mixture and beat until fluffy.
- In a small bowl, mix the sugar with the soy sauce and sake or wine, and lightly stir into the eggs.
- Heat a square frying pan over medium heat.
- Oil the pan very lightly (a small piece of cheesecloth is useful to do this)
- Pour in a third of the egg mixture to cover the entire pan. Cook over medium heat.
- Before the surface begins to dry, roll or fold the egg mixture towards you in thirds.
- Now, move the rolled egg away from you to the far end of the pan (or you can cheat and just turn the pan 180 degrees like I did 🙂
- Oil the empty space.
- Tilt the pan, adding another third of the mixture under the rolled egg – you can lift it with chopsticks. Continue to fry the mixture.
- Now roll the omelette away from you again.
- Oil the front half of the pan once more.
- Add the balance of the egg mixture – be sure to roll it under the omelette again.
- Just before the mixuter dries, roll the rest into the already-quite-fat omelette.
- Slide the roll so the its final join is underneat and cook for 10 seconds.
- Remove the roll from the pan and out onto the bamboo mat and roll up tightly.
- Press it neatly into a rectangular shape and set aside until cool
- Slice the cold omelette into 1 in thick pieces. (We did thinner. Maybe 1/2 inch)
by Krista | Apr 27, 2011 | Compatriot Wednesday
I was SO happy to get back to cooking club this week! It was so good to see everyone, to sit around for hours getting all caught up on our bits of news while we sipped wine and nibbled on crackers topped with provolone and salty farmer’s sausage.
The theme of the month has been eggs, but on this final night we went rather loosey-goosey with the rules and ate a delightful hodge-podge of this and that.
Cameron and Robin made a wonderful Gluten-free Egg Drop Soup. Instead of using flour to thicken the broth, they simply added more eggs and it was perfect!! I like it even better than the original.
Toby brought fresh pineapple and a whole bag of cheesy Gluten-free Pirate’s Booty to snack on.
Jen made a simple side dish that was so good! Carrots sprinkled with lots of green onion, covered with chicken broth and baked for an hour. Mmm, mmm! Tender and sweet with that lovely, salty broth.
We ended our evening with TWO kinds of chocolate dessert: Paul’s decadent Chocolate Souffles which got eaten so fast I didn’t get a picture, my Dark Chocolate Tart with Gluten-free Buckwheat Maple Crust. Delectable conclusion to our feasting.
What is your favorite thing to make with eggs?
Jen’s Baked Carrots
Ingredients:
6 carrots, cut in sticks
1/2 cup scallions, sliced
2-3 cups organic chicken broth
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Combine all ingredients in ovenproof dish and bake 60 minutes until carrots are tender.
Cameron and Robin’s Gluten-free Egg Drop Soup
Ingredients:
4 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup sliced scallions
4-6 eggs, beaten
Directions:
- Bring broth and green onion to boil.
- Using fork, drizzle beaten egg a little at a time into boiling broth. Egg should cook immediately. Add enough egg to reach desired consistency.
Krista’s Dark Chocolate Tart with Buckwheat Maple Crust
(Click here for recipe)
by Krista | Apr 13, 2011 | Compatriot Wednesday
I recently joined Tumblr to share my favorite pictures. If you like these photos and others from my travel and cooking adventures, follow me here for one photo a day.
http://ramblingtart.tumblr.com/
Hope you have a beautiful day, dear ones! xo
by Krista | Apr 6, 2011 | Compatriot Wednesday
It was raining like mad Monday night as I dashed through the downpour to fetch two pots of food from my car for Culinary Experimentation Club. Turns out it was actually Egg Night, but since I’ve missed the past few weeks due to illness, I showed up with soup.
No one seemed to mind though, especially when they very bravely tried my Reuben Soup filled with sauerkraut, pickles and Swiss cheese. I got the recipe from my friend Glenna who had been urging me to try it for months. I confess I was a bit leery about pickles in soup, but Glenna has such good taste in all other foods that I decided to trust her judgment.
She was right!!
It’s like a Reuben Sandwich in a bowl with the traditional rye bread served on top as croutons. Thick, creamy and deliciously cheesy with chunks of corned beef, Reuben Soup was a resounding favorite with my cooking club pals – even with those who hate sauerkraut AND pickles. I can’t praise it enough. Thank you, Glenna! 🙂
I also made Lentil Soup topped with Danish Crispy Fried Onions. Mmm. Twas a humble soup in comparison to the flashy Reuben, but still hearty, comforting and good.
After the soups came a dizzying flurry of creative egg dishes. Robin and her friend Nora (who was visiting from Germany) made scrumptious curried eggs on toast – a dish they’d learned during the year they spent in South Africa. Topped with cilantro it was sweet and savory, a surprising combination but a good one.
Cameron continued his Adventures in Smoking by smoking hard-boiled eggs. I love how the shells look so aged, like fine old antiques. Dipped in salt the eggs were good, hearty fare, familiar yet different with just that hint of smoke.
Our newest member Paul delighted us with his concoction: small sourdough rolls hollowed out and filled with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, sweet paprika and one raw egg. He topped them with more seasoning and cheese then popped them in the oven to bake for 20 minutes. They were so good! The bread nicely toasted and warm, the egg cooked firm. They would be a splendid thing to take in the car for the first leg of a road trip.
Darren and Nicole whipped up two versions of a Bacon Spinach Quiche, one gluten-free, the other regular. Ohhh, so yummy with fresh spinach, thick cut bacon, and topped with cheese that toasted beautifully.
What is your favorite egg dish?
Glenna’s Reuben Soup
(serves 8)
1 cup chopped onion
3 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup flour
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup sauerkraut, packed
2 cups corned beef, chopped fine
3/4 cup dill pickles, chopped
3 cups half-and-half (10%mf cream)
1 cup milk
3 cups shredded Swiss cheese
salt & pepper, to taste
slices of nice fresh dark rye bread OR
cut into cubes & toast for croutons
Directions:
- In large soup pan, saute onion in butter till tender. Stir in flour until smooth.
- Gradually add chicken broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low after it thickens.
- Add corned beef, sauerkraut, pickles, milk and cream.
- Simmer and stir often for about 15 minutes while flavors blend.
- Add cheese, salt & pepper. Stir till cheese is melted.
- Serve with your choice of rye bread or fresh croutons.
Robin and Nora’s South African Curry Eggs
(invented by a Zimbabwean, prepared Italian style, by some Americans)
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons -ish of olive oil
1/2 a sweet yellow onion
6 large eggs
Rajah Mild and Spicy curry powder
ground sea salt
enough red wine vinegar to make it yummy
1 loaf of whole wheat baguette
fresh cilantro
Directions:
- Saute the onions in the heated olive oil until they are soft and just starting to get brown.
- Add maybe 4 tablespoons of the curry powder and fry it all up until it gets a sweet and spicey smell.
- Add beaten eggs and cook scrambled style. Add salt, pepper, red wine vinegar to taste.
- Broil the bread drizzled with olive oil for a few minutes to crisp.
- Place small amount of scrambled Curry Eggs on top and sprinkle with cilantro
Darren’s Gluten-Free Spinach and Bacon Quiche
(Adapted from Paula Deen – just eliminate pie crust)
Nicole’s Bacon and Spinach Quiche
Ingredients:
6 eggs
1/2 cup pancake mix
1/2-3/4 cup milk
salt
pepper
2 cups fresh spinach
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
6 strips crisply fried strips thick cut bacon
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Combine first five ingredients. Set aside.
- Fill bottom of pie plate with spinach and sprinkle with bacon.
- Pour egg mixture over spinach, top with grated cheese.
- Bake 45 minutes.
